


The Sandwich means I love You

by eledhwenlin



Category: No Fandom, Original Work
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-02-26
Updated: 2018-02-26
Packaged: 2019-03-24 10:51:55
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 996
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13809654
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/eledhwenlin/pseuds/eledhwenlin
Summary: Food is love.





	The Sandwich means I love You

**Author's Note:**

> Written for picfor1000.
> 
> Hat tip for the title goes to Captain Awkward and my all-time favourite letter: [The sandwich means I love you](https://captainawkward.com/2012/02/13/190-the-sandwich-means-i-love-you-a-valentine/).

The first time Noah makes food for Julian, it's not actually for Julian. It's Anna's birthday and Noah makes her favourite for her party: rich sumptuous dark chocolate brownies.

He gets some compliments (always satisfying after all the work until he had the perfect recipe), but this guy seems to have an actual orgasm going by the way he moans around a mouthful of brownie. Noah can't help blushing.

"Who made these?" the guy asks. Anna laughs, turns him around and pushes him towards Noah.  
And this is how they meet: Noah holding his glass of wine, blushing, and Julian with wide eyes, his mouth chocolate-stained. 

As far as first meetings go, it's neither auspicious nor a total disaster.

***

The second time is a commission. Noah's not arguing about getting paid for baking a cake, but it feels weird. He's an accountant with a serious weakness for chocolate and baked goods, but it's just his hobby. Still, when Julian asks if he couldn't whip up a devil's food cake for his sister's birthday, Noah can't say no. He maybe worries too much whether it's good enough because right now Julian is standing in Noah's kitchen smiling.

"This look absolutely amazing," Julian says. "Thank you so much."

Noah bites his tongue to stop himself from saying that he gave it his best (and maybe foisted off some early attempts on his co-workers). 

Julian grins at him. "Is there any way I can make it up to you?"

"Other than paying me?" Noah blurts out.

Julian laughs. "How about dinner?"

"With you?"

"Well, I could get you a rent boy, but I'd rather have dinner with you myself."

Noah is so perplexed he says yes. Men like Julian don't ask him out and Noah's not brave enough to ask them out just to endure the inevitable shutdown. Noah doesn't date a lot. But he says yes and Julian lights up.

***

The third time is after their second date. Julian invites him to see a play. It's a bad day for Noah: he gets out of work late and makes it to the theatre just on time. There's no food to be had in the intermission, so Noah's running on the glass of wine Julian got him and a vending machine lunch that wasn't particularly filling. The play seems to drag on forever and by the time they get out, Noah is absolutely starving. He's also in an extraordinarily crabby mood and doesn't feel like eating out. 

Julian is a crazy person who owns a car in a city with perfectly fine public transport, but right now Noah is grateful because Julian is driving him home and despite traffic it takes half as much time as the subway.

Noah doesn't question it when Julian parks and gets out of the car as well instead of only dropping him off. He's mostly concerned about getting food in his stomach ASAP, although not driving Julian off with his bad mood follows right after. They're discussing the play while Noah gets out all the makings for a sandwich.

"No, but what were the flamingoes about?" Noah asks. The play was avant-garde and full of metaphors and completely incomprehensible to him. He's half worried about outing himself as an ignorant plebeian to Julian, who seems to take his questions in good humour at least, if his smile is an indication.

"I don't think you were meant to take it so seriously," Julian says.

Noah stops in the middle of assembling their sandwiches. "Isn't art always meant to be taken seriously?"

Julian laughs. Normally it's a 50:50 chance if people are laughing at Noah or with him and normally he would bristle, but Julian seems permanently amused by him and he never pokes fun at Noah. 

"That's a philosophical question. I personally think art is more enjoyable if you can laugh about it."

Noah stares at the two sandwiches he's just finished. Cooking is the only artsy thing he really knows anything about. It's never felt like a laughing matter to him.

Julian is still smiling at him when Noah carries the sandwiches to his tiny breakfast nook where Julian is sitting. He pushes one sandwich over to Julian. The look Julian gives him makes him feel warm all over and he's sure he's blushing. Julian always seems to understand Noah perfectly, even when he's not saying everything out loud, which is both great and unfair, because Noah can't make head nor tail out of Julian most of the time.

Their first kiss tastes of mustard and prosciutto.

***

The tenth time it's chicken soup made in Julian's inadequately equipped kitchen. Noah curses while looking for a tea egg for the spices. Everyone likes tea, therefor everyone owns a tea egg. Except Julian, Noah thinks uncharitably. He's dating the only man who seems to own only one spatula, one whisker and neither a tea egg nor a soup ladle.

Noah would despair if he were the despairing kind, but he's not, so he makes do. 

Julian sounds pitiful, wheezing and coughing when Noah looks in on him. "I thought you were sleeping," he says.

"I was," Julian croaks.

Noah feels his forehead, but his temp seems normal. "The soup will be ready soon," he says. "Do you need anything? Water, juice, crackers, I can--"

Julian puts his hand on Noah's arm and squeezes a little. "Just stay here with me?"

Noah can't say no, so he moves up to sit against the headboard, tugging Julian against his side, combing his hand through Julian's messy hair. He should keep his distance lest he catches Julian's germs, but Julian relaxes against him, getting heavier as he falls asleep, his hand loosely holding on to Noah's. This might not be a smart idea, but it feels good. Noah stays and listens to Julian's quiet snuffling.

***

The first time Julian cooks for Noah, he sets off the fire alarm so he ends up proposing over pizza and wine.


End file.
